Medullary Hemorrhage after Ischemic Wallenberg's Syndrome in a Patient with Cavernous Angioma

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The main complication of cerebral cavernous angioma is hemorrhage. Ischemic stroke as a complication of cerebral cavernous angioma has rarely been described, and hemorrhage after ischemic Wallenberg's syndrome has not been reported before. CASE REPORT A 45-year-old woman presented with perioral numbness, hoarseness, dysphagia, and worsening of her previous sensory symptoms. The patient had been taking aspirin for 3 years after suffering from ischemic Wallenberg's syndrome with left paresthesia as a residual symptom. Brain computed tomography revealed an acute medullary hematoma in the previously infarcted area. Follow-up magnetic resonance imaging revealed a cavernous angioma in the right medulla. CONCLUSIONS: We presume that cerebral cavernous angioma was responsible for both the ischemia and the hemorrhage, and we also cautiously speculate that the aspirin contributed to the development of hemorrhage in the previously infarcted area.